Chapter 2: Secrets in the Sauce
Dinner started with a bang—literally. I had barely taken a step into the dining room when Kara dropped a pot lid onto the tile floor, the clang echoing through the house like a fire alarm.
"Oops!" she said with a nervous laugh, crouching to pick it up. "First dinner with Alex, and I'm already making it memorable!"
I sat down at the table, trying not to smirk. My dad was already at his usual spot, scrolling on his phone like nothing in the world could bother him. Classic Dad.
"So," Kara began, setting a steaming plate of spaghetti in front of me. "I call this Kara's Secret Sauce."
I stared at the plate. It looked normal enough—red sauce, noodles, a sprinkle of parmesan on top. But the way she said "Secret Sauce" made it sound like it was laced with black magic.
"Secret sauce?" I asked, poking at the spaghetti with my fork. "What's the secret? Did you hide a love potion in here or something?"
Kara laughed, and it was loud—like, way too loud for a pasta joke. "Oh, you're funny!" she said, sitting across from me. "But no, nothing like that. It's just... a special family recipe."
"That's code for jarred sauce and extra salt," Dad muttered, not even looking up from his phone.
Kara shot him a playful glare. "Excuse me, this is not jarred sauce. I made this from scratch!"
"Sure, sure," Dad said, clearly uninterested in whatever marital banter they had going on.
I twirled a forkful of noodles and took a bite. It wasn't bad, actually. A little tangy, a little sweet—kind of like Kara herself.
"So, Alex," Kara said, leaning forward like she was about to interrogate me. "Tell me about yourself. What do you like to do? Hobbies? Friends? Girlfriends? Boyfriends?"
I almost choked on my spaghetti. "Uh, none of the above," I said, coughing a little. "I'm just... normal, I guess."
"Normal?" Kara raised an eyebrow. "Come on, everyone has something that makes them unique!"
"I don't know," I said, shrugging. "I like video games, I guess."
Her face lit up like I had just handed her a winning lottery ticket. "Video games! Oh, I love those. My nephews are obsessed with this one—what's it called? Craft of Mining?"
"Minecraft," I corrected, trying not to laugh.
"Yes, that!" she said, clapping her hands. "Do you play that one?"
"Not really," I said, twirling more spaghetti onto my fork. "I'm more into RPGs. You know, like Skyrim or Final Fantasy."
"Oh, those sound... intense."
"They're not for everyone," I said, hoping she'd drop the subject.
But, of course, she didn't. "Maybe you can teach me sometime!"
"Uh, sure," I said, knowing full well that would never happen.
Dinner continued with more small talk—mostly Kara asking questions and me giving one-word answers. She was trying so hard to connect with me, and I almost felt bad for not giving her more to work with. Almost.
After the dishes were cleared, Kara pulled me aside while Dad disappeared into his office.
"Alex," she said, her tone suddenly serious. "I just want you to know... I'm really happy you're here."
I blinked. "Uh, thanks?"
"No, really," she said, her voice softening. "I know this whole situation is weird. And I'm not trying to replace your mom or anything like that. I just... I want us to get along."
For the first time all night, I saw a flicker of vulnerability in her eyes. It was a little disarming, honestly.
"Yeah, I get it," I said, awkwardly shoving my hands into my pockets. "And... I'll try. You're not that bad."
Her face broke into a smile. "I'll take it!"
As I headed upstairs to my room, I couldn't shake the feeling that there was more to Kara than she was letting on.
And then I remembered the "Welcome to the Family" basket sitting on my desk.
There was a note tucked into the side of the book I hadn't noticed before.
I pulled it out and unfolded it.
"Watch your back. :)"
I stared at the note, my heart pounding. Who the hell had written that?
Kara? My dad? Some kind of cosmic joke?
One thing was for sure—living with my step-mom was going to be anything but normal.